Getting a soundbar for your home-theater setup gives you the best of both worlds: You don't have to settle for built-in TV speakers — which we've found to be consistently lackluster — but you also get to enjoy quality audio without the cost (or clutter) of a traditional speaker setup.
After testing dozens of the most popular soundbars on the market, we've found the $799 Sonos Playbase to be the best overall pick for those willing to spend a premium thanks to its rich sound and versatility as a home theater speaker. There are plenty of great sub-$100 soundbars for those on a budget, including the excellent Megacra 2.0 Channel Soundbar. Looking for something in-between? Check out our top picks below.
Latest News and Updates (August 2018)
- We've added the Yamaha YAS-108 as our new sub-$200 pick, thanks to the rich sound and healthy feature set it offers for an affordable price.
- We're looking forward to testing Yamaha’s latest model, the $500 MusicCast Bar 400, when it ships in September. This soundbar lets you add wireless surrounds to create a true 5.1 system, and also supports Multicast multiroom audio.
The premium Sonos Playbase features just about everything you could want in a soundbar, offering room-filling sound within a slick design that will look great in your entertainment center or directly under your TV. The Playbase is big on bass and offers rich vocals thanks to its 10 custom-made drivers, and it does a great job doubling as a Wi-Fi speaker for any of your favorite music apps. Best of all, it can be paired with any other Sonos speakers in your home for the ultimate multiroom experience, and supports voice commands via Amazon's Alexa.
Editor's choice
Sonos Playbase
Best Overall
Don't let its small 28-inch frame or inviting price tag fool you — Megacra's 2.0 channel soundbar offers big, room-filling sound. This soundbar offers some of the best bass you'll find in the price range, and packs distinct sound modes optimized for movies and music.
Editor's choice
Megacra 2.0 Channel Soundbar
Best Value
The Yamaha YAS-108 offers an impressive amount of features for a $200 soundbar, including HDMI, 4K passthrough, a variety of sound modes and Bluetooth support for jamming out to music. It also packs excellent sound into its small design, offering crisp highs and satisfying bass thanks to built-in subwoofers that boost the low end without the need for additional speakers.
Editor's choice
Yamaha YAS-108
Best Under $200
No soundbar packs huge audio into a tiny package quite like the Polk MagniFi Mini does. This unassuming speaker will fit seamlessly into any setup, and delivers crisp dialogue and deep bass with the help of its included wireless subwoofer. Plus, with Google Cast support, the MagniFi Mini doubles as a great home music speaker.
Editor's choice
Polk MagniFi Mini
Best Small Soundbar
The Sonos Beam is a small, affordable and great-sounding soundbar that also doubles as a neat smart home gadget. This speaker has full Alexa integration, allowing you to, say, control your Fire TV with just your voice, or ask about the weather or control your smart lights while binging Netflix from the couch. It also delivers big on the audio front for its price, with a wide soundstage and crisp dialogue that will make your favorite movies and shows sing.
Sonos Beam
Best Smart Soundbar
With Dolby Atmos support, this high-end soundbar delivers the kind of immersive, directional sound you'd typically only find in a multi-speaker home theater setup. And thanks to its Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity and myriad of advanced audio settings, the HT-ST5000 can deliver the best possible sound for any content you throw at it.
Editor's choice
Sony HT-ST5000
Best Atmos Soundbar
Now that 4K TVs are more attainable, you're going to want a soundbar that's optimized for ultra-HD sets. Enter the JBL Cinema SB 450, which offers 4K passthrough to preserve the full audio quality of your favorite 4K content. The 450 also offers deep bass via its subwoofer and is painlessly easy to set up, making it a good alternative to going through the pain of finding a pricey home theater system for your 4K TV.
JBL Cinema 450
Best for 4K TVs
The Samsung MS750 is the perfect soundbar for folks looking to build an epic multi-speaker setup. It supports Samsung’s multiroom audio technology, allowing you to connect other compatible Samsung speakers and create an incredibly immersive surround experience. It’s also simply a great soundbar on its own, with crisp dialogue, solid bass, and tons of connectivity options from Bluetooth to 4K passthrough.
Samsung MS750
Best Multiroom Soundbar
How We Test Soundbars
When testing soundbars, we play range of media — including movies, music and games — in order to evaluate overall sound quality. We also test any companion software that may come with a soundbar, and factor in how easy it is to set up and use each device.
Other features we consider include a soundbar's inputs, outputs and ability to be wall mounted, all of which determine how well it will work with your home entertainment setup. We also take into account each soundbar's wattage, its supported audio channels and whether it includes a subwoofer — all factors that greatly affect how each speaker will sound in your living room.
What is Dolby Atmos?
More and more soundbars are embracing Dolby Atmos, which is a surround sound technology designed to simulate the immersive 3D audio you'd get from a movie theater. The big difference between Atmos and traditional surround sound is that you'll hear sound move up and down and not just side-to-side, allowing you to get extra immersed when, say, a car flies overhead in an action movie. There are already lots of soundbars that support Atmos, including the LG SJ9, Sony HT-ST5000, and Yamaha YSP-5600. For more on the technology, check out our complete guide to Dolby Atmos.
What Soundbars Cost
You can get a decent soundbar for less than $100, as long as you're not expecting much in the way of special features. Stepping up to the $200-$300 range will get you extras such as a subwoofer and virtual surround sound, though you'll spending closer to $500 to $600 if you want fancy extras like Hi-Fi audio and 4K passthrough. Dolby Atmos soundbars can be found for as little as $300, but higher end models loaded with bells and whistles can easily run you over $1,000.
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About the author
I wanted to know which Vizio speaker are you referring to on the list here. I wanted to gift this to somebody. I am sharing two links from Amazon can you tell me which one is it?
1) http://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-S4251w-B4-Wireless-Subwoofer-Satellite/dp/B00CDIK908?psc=1&SubscriptionId=AKIAJ2RTWSYJUOAO3DIA&tag=bom_tomsguide-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00CDIK908&tzd=21&ascsubtag=[site|tguus[cat|[art|[pid|B00CDIK908[tid|14524950033369592[bbc|LESPRIX
2) http://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-SB4051-C0-Wireless-Subwoofer-Satellite/dp/B00SMBGP76
http://www.klipsch.com/products/reference-soundbars#r-10b